"Jessica Wong is the Founder and CEO of nationally recognized marketing and PR firm Valux Digital. Work has changed dramatically over the past five years. While flexible working was already a growing trend before the pandemic, restrictions on office-based work accelerated the shift. Since then, flexible schedules have become the norm, freelancing has surged in popularity and both are reshaping how big businesses operate."
"In 2023, 64 million Americans were working freelance part time or full time, according to Upwork. That number is equivalent to just under 40% of the total U.S. workforce. It's an increase of 4 million freelance workers compared to the previous year, and the number of freelancers is expected to grow to 86.5 million workers by 2027 -equivalent to just over 50% of the workforce."
"It's easy to look at small gigs offered on freelance platforms and underestimate the impact of freelancers on the economy. A closer look at the data shows that freelancers contributed $1.27 trillion through their 2023 annual earnings. To understand the magnitude of that figure and the economy's true shift toward freelancing, compare the figure to that of 2014. During that year, freelancers contributed just over $700 billion. Within less than a decade, the freelance economy grew by 78% based on annual earnings."
Work patterns shifted toward flexibility and freelancing over the past five years, accelerated by pandemic restrictions. In 2023, 64 million Americans freelanced part- or full-time, roughly 40% of the workforce, with projections reaching 86.5 million by 2027. Freelancers generated $1.27 trillion in 2023, up 78% from just over $700 billion in 2014. Businesses are increasingly normalizing freelance engagement and adopting freelance-first models that prioritize independent contractors over traditional employees. Historical measures of business size that emphasized headcount have given way to flexible talent strategies and on-demand contractor use.
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